Supply Chain Management in the New Millenium

CONCLUSION Unilever is a multinational company which ranks third globally in fast moving consumer goods. They have an excellent value chain which is one of the factors that has resulted in them to be among top consumer goods company globally. Their merger and acquisitions have led them to expand their company in different sectors of the consumer goods. They have 400 brands and sell their products across 190 countries. They have to work on some areas of the value chain to work even better than how they are working now.

Companies are looking at how to provide greater flexibility in moving parts globally. In a quest for greater efficiency and lower costs, there's been growing importance given to managing the supply chain effectively for the benefit of al... ... middle of paper ... ...older wealth is rising, making investors happy, whilst giving the technological industry (computers) a boost. Bibliography / References / Works Cited: McGraw-Hill, Irwin, Management Information Systems, Sixth Edition O’Brien ISBN: 0- 07-282311-9, 2004 Supply Chain Management Research Center http://www.cio.com/research/scm/edit/012202_scm.html Is Supply Chain Management What I Need? http://stylusinc.com/WebEnable/Sales/SCM.php What is SCM? http://scrc.ncsu.edu/public/s1whatis.html SCM: What does it mean to Industry now?

As another result of adapting to the lean production system, Jaguar has also renewed or found new suppliers to supply the materials according to the time frames and right amounts of materials.  Conclusion Lean production process is one of the most revolutionized processes of the century. In addition, it allows manufacturers to reduce unwanted waste and time; thus, increase the productivity and quality according to customers’ expectations. Even though, in early 90’s Jaguar went through a rough patch, by adapting to lean production system, it had rebuilt the company to be better in every way. Moreover, as a result of the lean production system, currently Jaguar has dramatically increased its market share throughout the world.

QUESTION 1. Critically evaluate the competitive advantage that can be gained by companies through IS/IT outsourcing. Provide suitable example to support your answer. The phenomenon of outsourcing has significantly affected the information technology or information system industry over recent decades. This is because, the constantly changing modern business environment forces companies to adapt and accept new practices.

It boomed with yearly sales that jumped from $510,000 in 1995 to over $17 billion in 2011. Amazon’s mission changed to leverage technology and expertise in invaluable employees to provide customers the best shopping experience on internet and became the “Earth most customer-centric company”. The company introduced a new strategy called “Associate Program” which the goal was attracted new customers to its retail storefront and grows sales. This new strategy proves to be the most important advantage and the company’s sales revenue produced by the associates reached 40%. Another innovation announced by CEO Bezos in 2011 was shifted Amazon to tablet marketplace with the introduction of the Kindle Fire.

Introduction Internet provides a significant opportunity to marketers to reach Indian consumers. It has emerged to be a significant retail channel for almost all the business firms in the country (Dash and Saji, 2008; Khare and Rakesh, 2011). Consumers’ growing buying power coupled with rising Internet penetration provides a significant alternative to international retailers. The country currently has the third largest Internet user base in the world and it is expected to be the second largest consumer base by 2015 (McKinsey, 2012). The consumers are willing to try the new retail format due to its convenience, affordability and accessibility (PWC, 2012).

Its brand and image developed since the opening of their first shop in 1947 adds value and is associated with stylish collections sold at lower prices compared to most of its competitors. The experience and commitment of the Persson family who owns the highest percentage of the organisation is probably the most important value chain H&M possesses as they are always investing in growing and development of the business. H&M stores are strategically located in cities’ best areas and small towns across the world carefully chosen to give them access to a much wider population. The use of IT and continuous upgrading of the system allows the business to operate cost effectively allowing them to achieve their main goals of continuous growth as well as supplying cheaper designer merchandise to all its customers. H&M’s non- hierarchical management style philosophy practiced is another chain value that is competitively advantageous as employees take initiatives at all levels leading to fast decisions and quick reactions essential to fast fashion business.

Wal-Mart is a powerful conglomerate, which contributes to businesses and people on a global scale through supporting the economy, creating jobs, and bettering the lives of millions. Wal-Mart is a place where millions of consumers shop daily. When people shop at a huge retailer such as Wal-Mart it is evident to see they are helping the economy by keeping the largest retail chain in the nation for business. Wal-Mart supports the economy by having supercenters all around the globe, which creates stores, jobs, income, and profits. A chain of events occurs which benefits the economy, and betters the lives of millions.

External Analysis The footwear industry is a complete package so the different stages of shoe design and manufacturing interact seamlessly. This means that design departments and supply chains can operate on different components within the same product family; it reduces the opportunity for error resulting in efficient and highly profitable production. For the first six months of Nike’s current fiscal year, they brought in $816.9 million in revenue, with a 35 percent increase over the same period a year ago. Meanwhile, the core Nike business grew from $5.26 billion to $5.89 billion, a 12 percent increase. As for Reebok Brand, worldwide sales in the 2004 fourth quarter increased 18 percent to $817 million.

Hence, the financial strategy can be seen as one of the most important factors in contributing to the business’s success especially to a large company such as Unilever as it is all about strategic decisions related to raising and manage the funds in the most appropriate manner. Unilever is the world third largest consumer goods company which produces a wide range of foods, home care and personal care products. Behind the sustained development over 8... ... middle of paper ... ...nilever Addresses the A4S Forum 2012 [online] Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3aNmF816mU (Accessed on 23rd Nov 2013) Unilever (2013) Dividend policy [online] Available at: http://www.unilever.com/investorrelations/shareholder_info/dividends/ (Accessed on 23rd Nov 2013) Watson and Head (2010) Corporate Finance Principles and Practices (5th ed) England: Pearson Education. APPENDICES 1. Table on gearing ratio of Unilever from 2010 to 2012 Gearing ratio 2010 2011 2012 Long term loans Equity capital + long term loans 12,486 = 45.3% 15,078 + 12,486 17,929 = 54.6% 14,921+ 17,929 14,635 = 48.2% 15716 +14,635 2.